How to Trim Hedges Evenly

Trimming hedges evenly can maintain their health and improve the landscape's aesthetics.

Hedges provide living decorative and functional borders, screens or lines in a landscape. Consisting of densely leafed deciduous or evergreen shrubs planted closely together, hedges require frequent maintenance in the form of trimming to maintain their clean appearance and desired size. Generally, hedges require two trimmings per year, depending upon the variety of shrub and its growth rate. Setting up a homemade guide and using sharp cutting tools ensures hedges are trimmed evenly.

1

Drive a metal stake into the ground with a mallet near the left front corner of the hedge. Adjust the stake's angle so that the stake's bottom end resides at the desired width of the hedge's bottom and the top end resides at the desired width of the hedge's top.

2

Measure the distance between the point where the stake enters the ground and where the hedge's main stem is located. Measure the angle of the stake in relation to the ground by using a protractor.

3

Drive additional stakes into the ground every 4 to 6 feet along the length of the hedge. Position each stake so it slants at an angle identical to the first stake's angle and is the same distance from the main stem as the first stake.

4

Tie a string to the top of the first stake. Extend the string among the tops of the remaining stakes along the hedge, tying off the string on the top of the last stake. Repeat this process, running strings every 4 to 6 inches along the length of the stakes to create a pruning guide. Repeat the entire process of driving stakes and running string along the stakes on the hedge's three other sides.

5

Cut off all foliage and stems protruding past the string guides by using hedge shears. Hold the shears at an angle identical to the stakes while cutting through foliage and stems. Avoid cutting foliage and stems inside the string guide.

6

Cut the foliage and stems horizontally on the hedge's top. Use the top of the stakes as a cutting height guide. Do not cut the hedge shorter than the stakes.

7

Remove the strings and stakes. Rake up the cut foliage and stems, and discard them.

Things You Will Need

Metal stakes

Mallet

Tape measure

Protractor

String

Hedge shears

Warning

Trim a hedge's top slightly narrower than its bottom. This practice ensures that all of the hedge's foliage receives a proper amount of sunlight.